Worlds Apart
by Laera Draconian
Summary: HermioneXFleur, AU. Its nice to be brilliant, but is it really worth it? warnings: violence eventually, mild language, yuri and yaoi.
1. Prologue

Title: Worlds Apart

Characters: Hermione/Fleur

Category: Hogwarts/ Yuri

Disclaimer: I own nothing

(AN: Not really my speciality, but if its ok and u want more then lemme know.)

The Christmas dance. A gala affair made even more attractive by the overwhelming amount of publicity it received. A nightmare, Hermione thought angrily as she stared unseeing at the Add Maths text book before her. Just another chapter in the never ending cycle her life had become. School, dinner parties hosted by her horrifically rich parents, public appearances…the world she lived in surrounded her with the rich, arrogant highborn and overall repugnant creatures who somehow managed to retain a human image in the eyes of the world. On the outside she was everything a well brought up girl should be.

On the inside she was screaming.

And now there was the Christmas dance at her school to look forward to. Joy, she thought moodily, slamming her book shut. Stupid private school. Even that she couldn't enjoy due to the ever watchful eyes of the world. Pressure pressure pressure.

Pressure from her parents to win the bloody competitions, pressure from the masters to win a goddamn scholarship, and pressure from the lesbians to meet them behind the chapel.

She was quite ready to drop out of it all and live her life the way she wanted to. But there was some illogical hold her parents had on her that kept the straying rebel inside at bay. Probably something she was born with, she decided. With a sigh that would have put most ten ton blocks to shame, she turned her mind to the problem at hand. Specifically, she needed a date for the dance.

There was Harry, she mused silently, recalling with ease the green eyes and sharp features of her best friend. His own family was pretty similar to the Grangers, but there was one obvious difference. They easily preferred their adopted son Draco instead, excusing Harry from the extra hell of having to be perfect at everything. He would go with her if she asked him to, but Hermione was far too close to him to place her friend in such a situation. She also mentally scratched his boyfriend Ron off the list. While Harry had no problem with aiding a friend, Ronald Weasley was well known for getting jealous easily.

Then there was Victor, she reflected as she drew up a mental image of the exchange student from last term. He had returned home now of course, but he would be back for the dance along with half a dozen other choice pupils his school chose to show off to Hogwarts. But last she heard, he had a new girlfriend he was smitten with. So that took care of him as well.

The memory of his visit brought an easy smile to her lips. He was a fun guy to hang out with and she had thoroughly enjoyed their brief time together. Their first kiss was in the chapel after their first date. They had just returned from the very respectable diner her parents had insisted upon, and it was early in the night. The sky was a dark shade of blue and the cloudless sky made the starlight shine with all the more splendour. And while her lips touched his gently and earnestly, there was no spark to suggest anything more. It was like kissing a friend, and they both felt the difference.

After that there was nothing else. They drew apart eventually after he returned home, but their friendship never wavered.

And then there was her. Hermione squeezed her eyes shut as the thought interceded. No, she protested angrily. This was not right. But the memory came anyway. It was the morning after Victor had left and Hogwarts was hosting the final of the Mathematic Olympiad. She was already missing the man's strong presence and commanding nature when she walked in. Was it possible for someone to be so beautiful? No, she was more than that. She was stunning. As she walked down the aisle separating the desks, all heads turned to her. She had flowing silver hair that shimmered with every step. Her face was as smooth and perfect as milk. High cheekbones accentuated the dazzling beauty of her eyes. Blue eyes that shone with a dreamy nature hidden beneath the full escort of her eyelashes.

It seemed as though the expensive white dress she wore couldn't match up to her own natural splendour. This was more than a normal girl, Hermione realized instantly. She had to be the daughter of the queen or something equally amazing. As she walked past Hermione's desk, her eyes flitted just for a moment onto the dazed brunette.

Hermione shook her head, instantly irritated as though the memory was a fly buzzing around her ears. Damnit, she thought as a slow flush stained her cheeks. She was not gay, no matter what Harry and Ron said to the contrary. But there was something terribly wrong with her if this was the way she felt about another girl.

She forcibly turned her mind back to her predicament. There was Draco, but he was too busy trying to keep his foster family happy to even consider going to the dance. So he was out of the question. Neville was definitely a last resort. Her parents, being the demons they were, found his family lacking somewhat, in the financial area. Although she didn't see why it mattered; they had enough money to adopt ten families comfortably for the rest of their lives. Seamus was an unaccountable pervert and Dean was his boy toy so that left Cedric. He wasn't bad looking, she pondered intently. And he was certainly someone with whom the world would like to see her with. Yes, unless he was already with someone else (which she doubted considering the Diggory's considerable fortune) then she would, in all likelihood speak with him tomorrow, she decided.

Till then, she had Add Maths homework to do.

ooooo review but only if u like it.


	2. Chapter 1

Title: Worlds Apart

Characters: Hermione/Fleur

Category: Hogwarts/ Yuri

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Chapter One

Morning follows night as it always does, and life went on no matter what the problems and arguments to the necessity of the contrary, but Hermione stepped out of her limo questioning the assumption it must. Hogwarts loomed above her, tall and majestic like the castle it was. Various students flocked to the wide gates in droves, chattering about their respective lives. She sighed and pulled out her laptop bag with an air of annoyance. Shutting the door behind her she turned to the looming stone structure. There was no one she knew in the immediate vicinity so she reluctantly made her way to the main hall.

The stone gargoyles that guarded the entranceway leered down at her with unvoiced malice. She threw them a dirty look and snatched the nearest student by the shoulder.

"Cameras are not allowed in the hall, Creevy." She drawled while viciously taking apart the offending object with uncalled for ferocity. The younger boy cowered before her.

"Whoa, someone is in a bad mood today." A snickering voice behind her interceded. "What's wrong? Didn't do Vector's homework?" The owner of the voice reached forward and returned the object to its owner. She had a glimpse of wild, long brown hair for an instant till the person draped an arm over her shoulder in a friendly manner.

"Oh shut it Harry." The irate prefect groaned at her best friend. She shrugged off his arm and turned to wipe the smirk off his face. As always, the sight of him lifted her spirits. His azure eyes laughed at her from the deceptively angelic face. Ever since they entered form four two years ago, he had simply stopped cutting his hair and now it fell in cultured brown spikes about his face, adding to the wild nature of his appearance. She smirked back at him and reached up to rumple the brown locks.

"How much gel did you use this morning? Two bottles?" He reflexively moved back and swatted her hand away before replying in a mock serious tone.

"Actually one and a half. Draco ran out last night so I had to share." He flicked back a brown strand with a practiced air. "So what's your problem Mia?" He returned using her pet name. When his friend didn't answer he shrugged and began mentally guessing. Hermione never much cared about what her parents had to say to her so it couldn't be that. As for the homework quip, he knew her better than that. Well there was always the fact that results for their first year of Form Six exams were being announced today. But then she had gotten used to acing everything easily so that couldn't be it either. Then a thought occurred to him.

"Hey, did you know that the Academy students are arriving today?" Hermione's head snapped up. She was wearing an unreadable expression. "Yeah, results are being distributed at Hogwarts so instead of waiting for it to arrive next week, the sample students for the dance are coming today instead to save themselves the trouble." Hermione looked up at him with a frown, but didn't say anything. They had arrived at the main hall. She looked at it with an air of boredom.

"Harry, where is Ron?" She asked suddenly, glancing around in surprise. Potter smiled at the mention of his boyfriend. "He's annoying Draco." Hermione stared at him for a moment before exploding into shocked laughter.

"You're not serious are you?" She choked out. The green eyed boy's smile turned into a wicked grin. "Of course I am." He replied in a matter-of-fact tone. "Draco needed someone to take his frustrations on and I needed an excuse to get away from my nymphomaniac boyfriend. It was perfect. And the best part is that Ron will come away all guilty for having 'betrayed my trust' and I'll be able to get away from him long enough to see what new surprises await me in the staff room." Hermione frowned, but declined comment. Her friend's less than lawful expeditions in their politically correct school were none of her concern. She brusquely changed the subject.

"Let's just…find a seat."

Ten minutes later vice principle Mcgonagall walked up to the podium on stage and with a fierce look at the seven hundred students seated impatiently elicited silence from the hall. Harry and Hermione were seated at the back of the large auditorium with a bedraggled looking Ronald and Draco. The start of term speech started as boorish as ever and soon after the start, Hermione found her head nodding. She stared out across the sea of fidgeting bodies searching for a distraction. Nothing caught her gaze until Harry nudged her painfully in the ribs. She threw him an angry look with a raised eyebrow. He gestured to the opposite side of the hall. She looked in the direction he had pointed.

In the chair closest to the aisle, was seated a silver haired vision. Hermione swallowed painfully. So she was already here. The girl's arm was draped over the back of her chair with abandon and her smirking face was tilted to the person next to her. The short skirt she was wearing did nothing to hide the smooth skin of her legs. She wasn't even sitting in the proper ladylike way. No her legs were plainly parted in a relaxed manner, allowing a tantalizing look at her inner thighs.

Hermione squeezed her eyes shut and breathed deeply, attempting to slow the quickened beating of her heart. A sudden heat had risen between her legs as confusing as logic gates in physics. She hurriedly turned away and frowned at the back of the seat in front of her. Mcgonagall was dismissing the lower school and beckoning to the Form Sixes. She stood quickly and threw Harry a dirty look. He was wearing a satisfied expression but placed a finger to his lips. They made their way up to the front of the auditorium silently, not even bothering to perform their prefect duties. What the hell had just happened? Granger found herself thinking madly. Damnit, it was her fault for just appearing out of nowhere. She swore violently in her mind.

"Please come up to the front of the line when your name is called to receive your results. Hogwarts students here, Academy students over here." Mcgonagall spoke to the nervous mass. She motioned to Harry and Hermione to keep order. Great, the book worm groaned inwardly. She made to head the Hogwarts line, but the captain of the soccer team was already yelling orders to his classmates; his way of dealing with nerves. She shook her head and walked over to the Academy students.

"Form a line over here please." She said to the closest ones with authority. They frowned but listened to her. Unconsciously she found her feet taking her to the back of the line where the silver haired beauty and her friends were standing silently. Chancing a look at them, she was surprised to see a petrified look etched onto each of their faces. She turned away and walked back to her line, trying hard not to think. The exams had been easy, she thought in surprise. There was no way this girl could have anything to fear. Maybe she was just nervous because they were exams. Ahead of her, some students let out shouts of surprise, others of shock at their results. Harry was the first of them to receive his slip. She looked closely as he returned to the back of the line before looking at his grades. He stared at them for a moment before shrugging and handing them to this best friend. Hermione took them with some trepidation.

Chemistry: A

Physics: B

Biology: A

Pure Mathematics: B

"Hey not bad." She grinned at him. Harry smiled back at her uncertainly and shrugged again. She knew what he was thinking. The results weren't perfect, so no matter how well he did, there was going to be hell to pay when he returned home. He sighed and turned to his foster brother. Draco looked, if possible, paler than usual, but as always, he didn't say anything to the rest of them. He turned to Harry with downcast eyes and handed him the slip silently.

Chemistry: A

Physics: A

Biology: A

Pure Mathematics: A

Harry closed his eyes for a moment and then forced out a smile. "Well done Draco, congratulations." He pulled the silent blonde into a fierce hug. Draco looked like he wanted to cry. He pulled away from the hug and stared at his brother.

"I'm sorry Harry. I didn't mean…" Harry stopped him with a shake of his head. He didn't say anything, but a look passed between them that only they could understand.

Ron came back with a dazed look on his face. His long red hair was still askew from his tousle with Draco. He handed the others his grades with a smile.

Chemistry: B

Physics: B

Economics: A

Pure Mathematics: B

"Well done Ron!" Harry grinned at his lover and pulled him into a rough hug. "Not bad for someone who failed all their internal assessments." He smirked. Ron looked flushed. Even Hermione was surprised. It was a pretty good accomplishment considering the fact that he went into the examination at a disadvantage. She walked up to receive her own grades. Mcgonagall handed her the paper without a second glance. She didn't even have to look at it to know what it said. She hesitated before going back to the others. She didn't want Harry to feel any worse, but they both knew that in her case, she had no choice. She passed it to Draco with discard and looked over at the Academy line. The silver haired girl was nowhere in sight.

"Congratulations Mia. Perfect score as always." Harry forced out with a grim look. She nodded at him and turned away. Her eyes searched the mass of celebrating students until she saw a flash of silver at the back of the hall. He squinted to see the expression the girl was wearing. It didn't take her long to discern the silent tears rolling down her face. There was a sudden jerk in her chest. Her heart ached at the sight. She looked closer to make sure she was seeing right. But there was no change. The girl's eyes were shut and her lips parted slightly. She was leaning on the wall clutching her right elbow with her left hand. In her fist she loosely held a piece of paper. All around her, celebrations were going on, oblivious to the scene of complete sorrow Hermione was witnessing.

Hermione felt a hand at her shoulder and without turning she knew who it was. Harry whispered in her ear.

"We need to talk." She groaned at the thought. There was nothing to talk about, she thought of saying, but then her friend dragged a finger gently across her cheek. "Mia, don't even think of refusing me. Your tears are not lying." Damn you Potter, she thought angrily. And why the hell was she crying? She turned around angrily and nodded.

Harry took her arm and led her out of the hall and back to the dormitories. The halls were gleaming with cold clarity and resonating with the sound of talking and laughter. They bypassed the congregated students easily and made their way up the stairs to the common room. When they entered, it was full of the sound of celebrations. Harry looked annoyed. He frowned at them but shook his head. He led her to the top of the stairs on the left and entered a fully furnished room with two four poster, double-decker beds. In the far corner of the room, two boys were hurriedly making out. Hermione stared at them.

"Oi! Get your ass where people can't see you." Harry ordered. The two jumped and rushed to leave the room. When the door closed behind them, Harry rounded on his best friend with a steely glint in his green eyes.

"You're gay." He accused in a betrayed tone. Hermione glared at him.

"I am not." She replied evenly. He snorted in answer.

"Oh really. And you expect me to believe that bullshit." He sat on the edge of the bed and crossed his legs. Hermione found it hard to think. She stared at the ceiling instead of answering him. He frowned at her.

"Mia, you like Fleur don't you?" She blushed at the name. Flower? What a common name for so rare a jewel. As if this was the cue he was waiting for, he jumped to his feet with a yell.

"You do! Why didn't you tell me Mia!" He charged in a hurt voice. She looked at him with a defiant glare.

"I don't like girls Harry! That's…strange." His expression became unreadable. She amended quickly, "I mean for me, its just…weird. I don't mean I have anything against people like that…Oh come on Harry. You know what I mean." He shook his head sadly.

"Yeah I know. But Mia," He added with a soft smile, "The way you reacted back there was a little strange too." Hermione groaned and cradled her head in her hands.

"Oh Harry, I don't know what to do!" She moaned. He sat next to her and placed his arms around her shoulder. She leaned into his frame grateful for the contact. "I don't know what's wrong with me. I need someone to go with me to the dance and I can't ask you or Victor or anyone else I know. I need to find someone to go with that my parents, the Devil's Advocates, would like and no matter what I think about, _she_ always forces her way into my head." Harry pulled her into a tight hug. So that was the problem. Girls were strange creatures, he thought with annoyance. "What about Cedric? He'd be very willing to help you." He offered wondering what he would have to do get the boy to accept. But Hermione shook her head.

"No, I already asked him. He's going steady with that Chinese girl even though she's not rich." Harry frowned. Well that was interesting. Mia continued. "I couldn't bring myself to ask him after I found out. I can't help admiring him for the grit he's showing in this obvious act of rebellion. He must care about her a lot." Mentally, Harry agreed. If it want for the fact that the Grangers hated his guts ever since he torched their garage last year, he would have offered to go with her himself.

"Hermione, Is that the real reason you're so upset?" he asked shrewdly. Hs went still against his shoulder. Her breathing was slow and normal, but he could feel the gears ticking.

"She never even looked at me." His friend whispered. Harry smiled at the admission, but waited for her to continue. "Back then, when the Academy sent students to the Olympiad., she walked past me without a second glance. I was the one who was giving out certificates afterwards and when it was her turn, she just took it without a word. Not like I can blame her." The bitterness in her words almost drowned out their meaning. "I'm as invisible to her as I am to everyone else. She's so, dynamic and beautiful…Harry how can I ever even speak to her? You know her; she probably doesn't even know I exist." Unfortunately, this was very true, but he couldn't bring himself to say it.

"Mia, you're not invisible. You know that. You are brilliant. There is no one as smart as you are in all of London and you know that. You've been recognized by every school and academic institution in the region. There's no way you can think of yourself like that." The girl in his arms snorted in reply.

"You wouldn't by any chance know what grades she got?" She asked demurely. For the first time that morning, Harry hesitated. He did know, but no good would come out of telling her.

"Why don't you ask her yourself?" he replied.

"Oh yeah that would go well. 'Hi, my name is Hermione Granger, I just got four A's, how did you do?' it sounds lame even coming from me." The beautiful boy felt helpless. There was nothing he could say. He didn't know how to deal with this. He glanced at the clock on the opposite wall.

"Mia, we have class in ten minutes." She nodded against his chest and pulled away. "Don't dwell on this ok? I know what it's like to feel unwanted and lonely, trust me, it will better if you just ignore it." He leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on her forehead and squeezed her fingers. She nodded and stood with him. He walked her to the door and held it open for her. She raised an eyebrow at him. "You're not coming?" He looked sheepish. "Ah…I just remembered, I didn't do Vector's homework." She grinned at him. "I'll copy Seamus' or something. See you there." He shut the door, leaving the brunette outside feeling slightly happier with life.

Xxx

(AN: Sorry it took so long to update…please review. )


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